Dream Girl
by eskimobee
Summary: Lucy Miller has dreams. Creepy dreams. Recurring creepy dreams. She is too afraid what her family will think of her. What happens when she confides in an old friend? Rated K   but that may change, slightly suggestive dark themes of mental health problems
1. Chapter 1 Follow Me

Disclaimer: Nah... only the italicised poetry is mine. And people I made up. I don't own skull candy either.

AN: So I wrote a wee poem randomly and decided to use it because I get bored easily and apply it to a Casualty fic. Poem is in italics and has been slightly altered to fit the story.

Also this chapter is sort of a scene setter at nearly 3000 words

Featured Characters:

From Casualty cast: Kirsty & Nita Clements, Tess, Adam, Jay, Mads, Zoe

My own creations:

Miller family: Hannah, Ben, Lucy, Charlotte

Nathan Jensen, Chloe Turner & gang

Enjoy!

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Casualty

Dream Girl

Chapter One

Follow Me

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~~Casualty~~

_Blank faces with empty voices, living in boxes._

_Being told what to do. What to think._

_Unseen eyes, watching._

_Prickling skin. _They_ are coming._

_Hear the allies shout:_

'_Run!' 'Far away!' 'Escape!'_

_Running afraid, feeling pain._

_Hot fluid flowing as vision blurs._

_No more running._

_Trapped by pain._

~~Casualty~~

Lucy shot up in bed. She'd been having the same dream every night for the past two weeks. Each night would be slightly different, affected by that day's events, but still the same. She was running away. She could feel them always watching her in her dreams. Whoever _they_ were.

She glanced at her clock. 5:42 am. She had another two hours until anyone else would wake up. She knew she wouldn't sleep again, so she quietly got up and crept to her door, careful not to wake Charlotte, her little sister, who she shared a room with. They always had the door cracked open to let in a little light from the hallway for six year old Charlotte, who still had a little trouble sleeping in the dark. She carefully slipped out and into the hallway, putting the door back in its original position.

_They_ never bothered her during the day. Then again, she couldn't hear the allies for some much needed help either. They were a small comfort when she was going to sleep at night. Even though _they _would be there, the allies could help her. She knew it wasn't real, of course she did. But when she dreamed, it was so real. So material. The pain last night had been real. That was the first time she had felt pain.

She was downstairs and had turned on a small desk lamp in the kitchen. She poured herself a glass of water and lifted a small tattered book from behind the fridge. Her dream diary. After the third dream, she'd decided to keep a record of her dreams and check for any change in them. She began writing.

What did _they _want with her? Why did _they_ follow her? What was so special about her that her dreams were constantly invaded? Questions which circled her mind every day after waking up early from a dream.

Muffled footsteps sounded on the stairs from beyond the kitchen door. She leapt up and hid her diary in her schoolbag which had been left on the kitchen counter. She sat down again just as the kitchen door opened.

"You're up early, mum."

"So are you, Lucy. It's ten to seven. How long have you been down here?"

An hour. "Not long. I woke up a bit warm, so I came down for a glass of water." She lifted the glass and drained the rest.

"Oh. Have you got a temperature?" she asked putting her own quite warm hand on Lucy's forehead

"No mum, I'm fine" she wriggled away "I'm going to go get dressed and come back down for breakfast."

"Ok, well could you get your sister up, I'm going to see your uncle Mike about the car later and I need you guys off to school as early as possible today."

"Sure thing, mum." She got up and placed her glass in the sink, before running upstairs to wake Charlotte.

~~Casualty~~

Morning.

The sun breaking over the horizon. A brief glimmer of hope, before realising that someone somewhere is in pain.

Morning.

The feeling of invincibility before the realisation that a new day of life has begun and the atrocities of work beckons. Doctors have to have a level of precision and professionalism. A bedside manner that is caring yet detached, impersonal.

Morning.

The end of another long night shift, the calling of black-out blinds and a warm bed.

~~Casualty~~

"Lucy, why are you being so loud?"

"I could ask you the same thing about last night, Ben. I didn't get to sleep until two am. I have a maths test today. You know how bad I am at it. I really could have done with the sleep."

"Shut up. Has mum given you a job to do?"

"What do you mean?"

"Get the baby up, idiot."

"I'm not a baby, I'm six." Said a defiant little voice

"Charlotte. Right, could you go downstairs and get your breakfast while I get changed for school, then we'll swap."

"Okie dokie karaoke." She said, skipping down the hallway and going down the stairs in the same impish manner.

"There's no need to be so rude, Ben."

"Yeah, I know. This is just more fun, my dear little squirrel."

"Mum told you not to call me that."

"Yeah, well mum's downstairs. She won't exactly come running to your rescue when she sees you haven't got ready for school."

"Shut up. Get out of my way."

"I'm just stating the obvious." He said as he stepped back to allow her access to her room

"Go away!" she shouted from behind her door

He chuckled, swung his bag over his shoulder, and followed Charlotte down the stairs.

~~Casualty~~

Kirsty had been asleep for only a few hours when she was being shaken awake.

"Why are you in bed, mum? It's half seven."

"Sorry, darling. I was working nights do you want me to take you to school?"

"No, mum. Sorry, I forgot you were on nights. I'll get the bus. See you later, yeah?"

"Yeah. I'll be awake a bit later again, I'm going to do a little shopping, so I can pick you up from school."

"Okay. Just get some sleep, and I'll see you later."

~~Casualty~~

"Mads, can you help me in CDU for a bit?" Adam called to the young nurse

"Ok. I'll just finish with this patient."

The ED was at its usual weekday morning busyness, Changeover from night to dayshift was as smooth as usual with the normal minor timetable hiccups where they ended up being either under or overstaffed for an hour around shift change.

"Right, Jay, the usual suspects; LFT; U & E; full bloods and could you order a head CT, just to be on the safe side." Zoe said to Jay, before regarding their patient. "Ok, Michael, we're going to take a picture of your head and run some tests to see how we can make you better."

~~Casualty~~

"Nita! Wait up!"

"Jensen, if you wanna catch up then live up to your name."

"Oi! That's not nice." He laughed, slightly out of breath "So, is your mum alright?"

"Yeah, she's better. Especially after dad-"

"Hey, it's alright. You guys'll be fine."

"Yeah. Come on we'll miss the bus if we're not careful."

"You know I'm here if you wanna talk, yeah?"

"I know, Nathan."

"Hey," he grinned "That's the first time you've called me Nathan in a long time."

"That's 'cause it's your name, Nathan Daniel Jensen."

They walked the last few metres to the bus stop, Nita groaned inwardly as she realised who was at the bus stop. Chloe Turner and her little entourage. A slight relief when she realised that Lucy Miller and her brother were also standing there. Chloe wouldn't get physically violent when there were witnesses who wouldn't take her side.

"Well, well, well. Nita Clements. Star of the show. Finally graces us with her presence, with her leading male, Jensen Button."

"Chloe, no-one even likes you, so go away."

"Who asked you, freak?"

"Leave her alone."

"Clements has a voice of her own. Wow. Never thought I'd see the day."

"Chloe, do I need to remind you that the next time you're reported you're gettin' chucked from the school? As for you, Lucy, I'd leave well alone. Not good to get in a fight the first time you get the bus. Especially not with her."

They were silent until the bus arrived. Nathan put his hand across Chloe, blocking her entry onto the vehicle and allowing the others to board. "Now, are we going to be a good little Barbie doll or do I need to go to the principal and recommend that you find an alternative source for your educational needs?"

"I'll behave Jensen. You've changed. Ever since you started hanging around with that little freak-show, you've pushed me further and further away. I still think you're amazing. Come on. Ditch the weirdo and come back to the crew. I'll even take you back."

"No. She's a more wholesome, genuine and overall nicer person than you. I was shallow and naive. Now I'm able to see how fake you guys really are. You'd better get on the bus." He moved his arm to let her past, and followed her, showing his pass to the driver as he got on.

~~Casualty~~

Adam knocked the door to Tess's office and put his head around the door. "Tess, was Kirsty not supposed to be working today?"

"She was but she switched with Mads."

"Did she give a reason?"

"It was Mads who actually wanted the shift change. She couldn't do last night because her son caught a bug and she couldn't get anyone to look after him overnight at such short notice. Kirsty said she was able to switch, why?"

"No, nothing I was just a bit confused."

"Adam, it's all over. Kirsty and Nita are fine. Stop worrying."

"Yeah. I guess it just became second nature where Kirsty's concerned." He smiled and said a quick "thanks, Tess" before leaving to continue his shift.

~~Casualty~~

English. Worse, double English. Lucy sat bored as her over enthusiastic teacher went on and on about poetry. Shakespeare was ok, to a point. Ezra Pound, T.S. Eliot and Ernest Hemmingway were probably exciting for some, but poetry just wasn't her thing.

She looked across the room and saw Nita looking as bored as she felt. In fact half of the class was like that. She wanted to talk to Nita after class but she usually was the first out of classes. She'd talk to her during lunch.

Maybe Nita could help her.

~~Casualty~~

Nita saw Lucy looking at her and smiled. The Chloe Turner incident that morning had been annoying and the other girl seemed quite nice. Lucy's brother hadn't stepped in, he'd been useless. He'd just stood there with his bright green skull candy headphones, and only moved to get on the bus. Lucy was a nice enough person but Nita hardly knew her. She could tell Lucy wanted to talk to her but she just wanted to stay in her small group with Jensen.

Last year, Ben Miller had set fire to the head-teacher's shed. There hadn't been much damage, but he'd been suspended for a month and had been in solitary confinement for the two months after. Her dad had told her to stay away from him. An old work mate of his had landed in the hospital with severe facial burns after the incident.

Her dad had said it could have been much worse. So he made her promise to not have anything to do with 'nutters with lighters' and he meant their families as well.

~~Casualty~~

"Nita. Can I talk to you about something?"

Nita chewed her lip "Ok. What about? Is it anything to do with Ben?"

"No." She'd expected this, so didn't say more.

"Ok. That's alright."

"Do you know anything about dreams?"

"They happen when you go to sleep. Your imagination makes stuff up and shows it to you."

"No, that's not what I mean. What I mean is, do you know why someone would have recurring dreams?"

"I don't know, sorry. Are they... bad?"

"Yeah. Sort of. They're confusing and kind of creepy."

"Do you want to talk about it? I don't know if I'll be much help, but I could ask my mum. She's a nurse."

"Listen, forget it. We hardly know each other."

"If you remember we were best friends from nursery up to Year 4."

"Until I had to move to Wales."

"Yeah, but now you're back. So, how about you come back to mine some time and we can catch up. Maybe you could tell my mum about the dreams."

"I don't really know, Nita. I haven't told anyone about them. Not even my mum."

"Well. You came and talked to me. Obviously you had a reason to."

"I don't know what it was. But I guess I'm glad I did."

"Me too. It's nice to know you again."

"Same here." The two reunited old friends grinned as they walked off to their next class together.

~~Casualty~~

'_Adam,_

_Just in case you're wondering, I've gone to pick up Nita from school. I know you'll probably be back before us. Call if you want me to pick anything up on the way back._

_Kirsty x'_

He smiled at the note and dropped the shopping onto the counter. Adam lifted his phone and texted her; _'I got pretty much everything we need, I can't think of anything else, I haven't got anything to eat for dinner but I could probably make something up. See you when you get home. Adam.'_

He unloaded the groceries and put them away in their respective places. He'd finished putting away the last few things when he heard the front door open. "Hey," he called "I'm in the kitchen."

"Wow. Organised _as well_ as a doctor. Nice."

"What are you trying to say about the many doctors of this world?" He replied in the same jokey manner

"Mum was just saying on the ride home how doctors are useless when it comes to handwriting."

"Well, she's probably got us there then. Sometimes I can't even read my own writing. It's a stereotype which is so terribly true for quite a staggering majority. Although it is generally more a male thing. Again with the stereotypes being stupidly correct."

"Oh, Mum can I talk to you about something later?"

"Yeah, sure thing. Go on. Get out of that uniform, you, while we try and think of something to eat for dinner."

~~Casualty~~

Lucy had been acting strangely for the past few weeks. It was as if she wasn't getting a lot of sleep. Ben usually was to blame, keeping half the neighbourhood awake either coming home late and making lots of noise or just playing music in his room. 'Playing', meaning blasting it at deafening levels. Charlotte seemed oblivious to everything; she was only six after all. Six year olds don't normally pick up on teenage mood swings and rebellion. Hannah Miller cradled a cup of hot chocolate in her hands, hoping it would ease her racing mind into sleeping.

~~Casualty~~

_Run. Run away._

_Hide the fear under your mask._

_All is well._

_None of this is real._

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AN: so this could basically go any way

Which storyline would you like me to go along or will I continue on this mishmash TV style everyone gets a go kinda thing

Drop me a wee review to let me know

daydreamerkid xx


	2. Chapter 2 Sweet Nightmares

Disclaimer: I don't own Casualty or its characters. Only the people I made up are mine.

AN: So this seems pretty well received... I'm still fairly new to the whole Casualty writing universe... Also- I have brought some characters from my other casualty fic into this story, changed some details about them and added more

Featured Characters:

From Casualty cast: Kirsty & Nita Clements, Adam

My own creations:

Miller family: Hannah, Ben, Lucy, Charlotte

Nathan Jensen, Chloe Turner, DI Robyn Angelo

McAllister Family: Michael, Sarah, Shannen, Andrew (DCI)

Enjoy!

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~~Casualty~~

Dream Girl

Chapter Two

Sweet Nightmares

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~~Casualty~~

"You are so worthless! You're a terrible mother. You know it, I know it, _Sarah_ knows it, and she's only _five_. You make me sick." *SLAP*

"Worthless" *SLAP* "Disgraceful" *SLAP* "Dirty" *SLAP* "Slut" *SLAP*

Every day. Without fail. For the past year. He'd hit her. She'd cry. He'd hit her ten times harder. She'd cry harder. He'd keep hitting her and kicking her. Then he'd leave. At first he'd make up some excuse. He had to go on a job, or he had to go get some paperwork from the office, or he just needed some space for a few hours. After a while, he just stopped and would just leave when he'd finished. She didn't know why she didn't just leave him. Any time she thought about it, she'd think of something that wouldn't allow her to. It usually involved the five year old. She _couldn't_ leave. Sarah. He loved her. She had to stay for Sarah. He would never hurt Sarah.

Or would he?

~~Casualty~~

They were getting worse. This was the first morning that Lucy woken up crying. It had been three days since she had told Nita and she was going to her house today. Maybe Nita's mum could help. She got up, careful not to disturb Charlotte, and went to the bathroom. Turning on the light, she looked in the mirror and wiped away the few stray tears. _'It was just a dream' _she told herself. She had to calm down and clean herself up.

'_Only a dream' _Lucy reached for her facecloth and washed her face.

'_Just a stupid dream. A stupid, stupid dream.' _She dried her face and turned the light off as she left the bathroom. She started to go back to her room, she may as well try to get some more sleep.

~~Casualty~~

Something caused Hannah to jerk awake. She saw the blue numbers of her clock read 5.26. _Way_ too early to get up. She turned over to try and get back to sleep for an hour but heard the padding of feet pass her door. Curious, she got up and put on her dressing gown, which had been tossed on her chair, and quietly followed the sound.

"Lucy?"

"Mum."

~~Casualty~~

When Kirsty went into the kitchen that morning, Nita was already making breakfast. She remembered that one of her daughter's friends was coming round after school today to catch up since they'd last known each other in Year 4. Nita had told her that the girl had been having weird recurring dreams and had asked her opinion. Kirsty agreed to talk to her and see if she could give her any advice.

"So." she began slowly "Your friend."

"Lucy."

"Lucy. Yeah. I was wondering if you knew anything more about her family. I remember her older brother set fire to that shed a few years back, but that's about it. What are her parents like?"

"Well, her mum's really nice, I've only really seen her on parents night and when she picks her up. I don't know anything about her dad or if he's around. She has a little sister as well. She's six."

"Right. Do you know if she's ok at school?"

"Yeah, she's pretty smart. She's really good at art, not so great at Maths or English but with English, Mr Anderson's enthusiasm is too much to bear first thing on a Monday."

"Ok. I'll talk more to her later on I just wanted to get your perspective on the matter."

~~Casualty~~

"Ben! Stop it!" shouted Charlotte, when her brother kept tapping her on the head.

"Hey, Ben. Behave." Their mother scolded lightly "You know how she is in the morning." She noticed her other daughter picking through her cereal and decided not to say anything about it until later. "So, Lucy. Aren't you going to someone's house today then?"

She nodded, not lifting her eyes for her bowl.

"The last time I saw Nita Clements you were both 8 or 9."

"Nita Clements?" asked Ben "That short kid who hangs around with that kid Nathan?"

She nodded again.

"What's up, baby squirrel? Cat got your tongue?"

She rolled her eyes and put her bowl away. Hannah hadn't realised she'd finished.

"Ben, what have I told you about calling her squirrel?"

"That it's so cute and fluffy but she doesn't appreciate it 'cause she thinks they're just rodents with bushy tails?"

"No, I told you before and I'm telling you again, that it's immature and irritating, so stop doing it."

By this time, Lucy had gone upstairs to get her bag to go to Nita's. Hannah heard the front door open and close as she left. Maybe going to a friend's house was all she needed.

~~Casualty~~

Nita got to the bus stop and saw Ben there, but no Lucy.

"Hey, Ben. Where's Lucy?"

"How should I know? She left early this morning and didn't even say goodbye to anyone. Not even Charlotte."

"Ok. Maybe she got an earlier bus."

"Yeah. It's not as though she's never skived before."

"Well, she's coming to mine and we have art today. She said she'd help me with my concept piece."

"Don't ever make her promise anything, it'll all turn to crap. She must get that from our dad. Basically, leave her alone, she's not worth the trouble."

"I was her friend years ago and I want to catch up. I don't see what your problem is."

"My problem? I don't have a problem, it's her. She was all moody this morning. Total weirdo." He finished, trailing off, putting his headphones on.

Fine. She'd just catch up with her in school.

~~Casualty~~

"Ok. Michael, here are your discharge forms, If you sign these, we can have you out of here in no time."

"Thanks," said the sixteen year old, as he took the forms from Zoe, "can't wait."

She left him to it and saw a blonde, twenty-something year old with a little girl, in the middle of the ED, looking a bit lost. She noticed that the woman was wearing makeup, which didn't quite hide a black eye.

"Can I help you?" she asked the woman

"Yeah, I'm looking for my nephew, Michael McAllister. Is he here?"

"Yeah. Are you here to get him?" she nodded. "Ok. He's just over there, signing discharge forms. He'll be able to go in a few minutes once he's done."

~~Casualty~~

"Hey, Robyn, I'm stepping out for a bit to go get my nephew from hospital. My brother just texted me and asked me to go, he's stuck in traffic and can't get there for ages."

"Ok, I have the paperwork for the DeMartino case nearly done. I'll leave it on your desk when I finish it." She said, closing the door to his office behind her as she went in. "I was thinking." Robyn leant against the door.

"Uh oh." Andrew said, jokingly. He went over to her as she spoke again.

"Maybe we could go to that new restaurant in town later, after work."

"You know, I'd love to, but Shannen wants me home so I can read a bedtime story to Sarah." He took her hands and he leaned close enough to smell the slight flowery smell of her shampoo.

Robyn groaned slightly "Daddy duty, why must you get in my way?"

"I know. I'll make something up and we could go out after she's asleep." He kissed her and pulled away, leaning his forehead on hers.

"Ok, sounds good to me." She grinned, seductively "Guv."

~~Casualty~~

"Ok, Michael, If that is all, have a safe journey home and you'll need to make a follow-up appointment with your GP. Ok?"

"Yeah, thanks." Zoe smiled and started to walk away when he said "Actually, Dr Hanna. There was one more thing."

"Ok, go on."

"My aunt, here is in a bit of a sticky situation."

"Michael!" the blonde said, in a worried, quiet voice

In a similar tone, he replied "Seriously, Shannen. Do you want Sarah to find you like I did last week? Or worse?"

The young woman turned away from Zoe a little more and looked at her nephew in the eye for a few seconds, before turning her attention to the little girl.

"Shannen's husband has been hurting her. A lot. I found her unconscious last week, he'd beaten her up so badly she was knocked out for nearly an hour. Sarah probably doesn't know what's going on, but pretty soon she'll be old enough to pick up on it if she hasn't already."

"Ok." Said Zoe "First of all, I'm going to have to report this to the police."

"No! Please! Don't!" Shannen desperately pleaded "Don't call the police!"

"Shannen's husband, Andrew has been newly appointed a DCI. She's afraid they'll believe him over her. He thinks he can get away with it."

"Ok. How about I examine you first and then we can go from there?"

"Yes." She replied quietly. "Ok. Just don't ring him. I don't want him to know I'm here."

~~Casualty~~

"Hi, I'm looking for Michael McAllister, his dad just asked me to come and get him."

"Ok, let me just check." Noel looked on his computer and after a minute, said "He's been discharged, he may have already gone."

"Ok. Any chance you'd know where he'd be?"

"No, sorry. I'll see which doctor was treating him."

"Thanks."

"Ok. It was Dr Hanna, and he was discharged about 20minutes ago, so he could still be here." He looked up and shouted over to Kirsty, who was talking to Jay "Kirsty? Jay? Have either of you seen Dr Hanna?"

"Nah, sorry, mate." Replied Jay, in his usual manner

"Uh, I saw her go upstairs with a patient about 10-15 minutes ago" Kirsty said after Jay had finished. She turned to the man and said "I've just gone on my break. I could go up and see if we could find her."

"Yeah, I'd like that, thanks."

~~Casualty~~

It was their lunch break. Nita and Lucy sat on the steps at the front of their school building. Neither had spoken much and Lucy hadn't eaten anything. Nita, worried about her friend, had offered her something from her own lunch, which had been politely declined. After some time of sitting there, Lucy spoke up.

"I remembered something last night in one of my dreams. I knew it wasn't just the dream this time, it was a memory within the dream."

"Ok..."

"I remembered that my dad got shot. He had told me to hide, cover my ears and count to a million in my head. I heard it. I saw him from my hiding place. I saw the blood. It was as clear as day."

"Is this what's been following you around?"

"No. I thought it was at first. I thought that maybe I'd get some answers, but then _they_ came and took the people who shot my dad. _They _did horrible things to them. I was kind of glad that _they_ weren't after me for once. That _they_'d taken bad people from the world. But that's not what really happened. When it happened I stayed and counted to a million. I didn't take my eyes off my dad. I stayed there until the police came. They didn't know I'd seen him get shot."

~~Casualty~~

"Ok, Shannen, I got the results back from the blood I took for testing."

"Ok." She replied timidly

"The tests showed that you have a slight iron deficiency, but nothing to be too worried about and you are also pregnant."

Everything crashed down around her as Zoe's words burned into her mind, and silent tears fell down her face.

"Shannen." She turned around and went whiter that a ghost

"Andrew."

~~Casualty~~

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It's not asking for much to read and review

If you ask, I can read and review fellow author's own writings, when I get the time

I am now again available for BETA reading so, if you want, just drop me a line and I can get back to you ASAP

daydreamerkid xx


	3. Chapter 3 Don't Cry While I'm Sleeping

Disclaimer: Well, if it was mine, I wouldn't have any time for any other fanfiction worlds… in fact I wouldn't even be on fanfiction… and wouldn't your lives just have a big, gaping, daydreamerkid-shaped hole in them?... I don't own play-doh either

AN: I have misplaced my pills… the ones that make me "sane"… which is why you're getting another installment at one in the morning.

Featured Characters:

From Casualty cast: Nita and Kirsty Clements, Zoe, Adam

My own creations: Lucy, Hannah and Ben Miller

Gemma and Chloe Turner

Shannen, Michael, Andrew and Sarah McAllister

Robyn Angelo

Enjoy!

##########

~~Casualty~~

Dream Girl

Chapter Three

Don't Cry While I'm Sleeping

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~~Casualty~~

She had the diary in her bag. She'd locked it and put it in a box, which was also locked, the two keys on a fine silver chain around her neck. The chain had once belonged to her mother, who had lost the charm off it in her late teens. The charm was a small silver angel, with gold lining on the hem of the dress. It had been an inexpensive trinket from her then boyfriend, Lucy's father. He'd described Hannah as his slightly less than perfect angel, because perfection was just plain boring, and therefore was not in fact perfection.

After he'd been shot, they were going through some of his things, and had found the charm. Her mother knew it was the one she had lost, because it had a small chip in it where the catch had broken and it had dropped. The dent was right on the angel's face, and looked like a scar that stretched from the angel's left ear to the right corner of its smiling mouth. He'd felt bad about it and said he would get her another one. She'd said no. She was his imperfect angel, and now the charm really described her.

Then she'd been devastated when she'd lost it. By then, though they'd moved on from cheap laughs and little trinkets, to each juggling university life and a part-time job. It quickly became forgotten and they'd got married a few years later.

_He must have found it when they were moving in together._

~~Casualty~~

"Pregnant? Wow. I wasn't expecting that again."

"Shall I leave you two for a few minutes in private to talk?" Zoe asked slightly awkwardly

"No" Shannen said at the same time Andrew said "Yes"

"I mean. I don't think there's anything to talk about, Andrew. I'm pregnant, it's yours, end of." She said hurriedly

Andrew smirked "Well, I would have thought we'd have some stuff to talk over, in fact there's a lot to talk about."

"I'm not really in the mood to talk. Not yet, I need to let it sink in first, ok love." She said with a strained smile. "You should get back to work, I can take Michael home, and I've to go get Sarah some things for her dancing."

"Right. I'll see you later." He turned and started to leave. Shannen stopped him, saying "Andrew" He turned, with that smirk again, sliding into a true smile when Zoe looked up "Yes, love?"

"Can you not tell anyone? Not yet, anyway. It's early days and anything could go wrong. I don't wanna jinx it."

"Sure. Anything else?" His tone to an outsider would have made him seem the concerned, caring father-to-be; but to Shannen his whole demeanour painted a picture of a patronising and ruthless uncaring monster. The true form he only displayed to her.

When he left, Shannen burst into tears. Zoe hurried over to comfort the young woman. "Hey, what's up?"

"I'm stuck, now. I can't leave. I can never get out." She said in between sobs

"_I've got no other choice."_

~~Casualty~~

Kirsty heard the words of the sobbing woman in the private room. She'd stayed and listened outside the room as she'd taken the man to find his wife, even after he'd left. It was like an echo of her own words, when Adam had been pleading with her to leave Warren. _'I can't leave.' 'I can't be late for him'_

She knew the fear that this woman was feeling. Yet, she couldn't bring herself to venture into the room to offer her own advice. But she couldn't leave either. Something was stopping her. On one hand it could get way too personal for her, and she could break down; on the other, she felt she had an obligation to help this woman. It was so familiar, yet different. There was one similarity between them which was glaringly obvious.

_They both stayed for the sake of their daughters._

~~Casualty~~

Chloe Turner glared across the room at the small group sitting in the corner of the art room. Nita Clements had stolen Nathan Jensen away from her. The freak was contaminating his perfect form, touching him. That other freak, Lucy Miller just sat there, laughing along with little miss friend stealer. Only, Nathan had been more than a friend. She'd opened herself to him, even thrown herself at him. All that resulted in was her falling flat on her face. He'd rejected her. No-one rejected Chloe Turner. Not even Nathan freaking Jensen. Holly was trying to get her attention. She inwardly shook thoughts of the group in the corner from her head, and turned her attention to the project at hand. She, Holly and Jessica were working together on their group concept piece. It would be the best, because they were the best three in the class.

_It would be perfect._

~~Casualty~~

Andrew McAllister glanced at his DI. She was hunched over her desk, which was a mess of paperwork and coffee cups. He could tell she was trying to make sense of their latest case and he knew not to interfere: he'd learnt not to the hard way, despite what he meant to her. He knew she'd get mad at him for staring at her while she was working, when it came to certain things, his being her senior officer didn't come into play at all.

He didn't want to seem needy, but his affair with Robyn Angelo added some spark into his otherwise mundane life. She could make him feel certain things that Shannen never could. Robyn wasn't one for commitment, unlike Shannen, which he found more fun in. The idea of no strings was extremely appealing. With Shannen, he was tied down. With Robyn he was free.

~~Casualty~~

Art had always been Lucy's favourite subject. She could sit for hours drawing, painting or making something from clay. She used to make things from play-doh, when she was younger. The only problem was that she wouldn't put it away and it would dry out so she kept ending up getting more from her dad. He'd always buy it on the way home from business trips.

The memory made her smile as she passed Nathan a bottle of blue paint, so he could paint the sky in their scenery. They'd gone for a simple English countryside backdrop with their three dimensional portion being industrialised New York.

Their theme had been to show conflicting subjects being in harmony, it was to include both two and thre dimensional components. They'd debated for ages and had eventually come up with their final construction.

Lucy glanced at Chloe Turner and her two little shadows, Jessica Chidden and Holly Degas. They were doing something about models and drugs. Shallow and kind of preppy. At least Lucy and the other two had thought outside the box. The other group had just used something already in existence. They were unimaginative and way too predictable.

~~Casualty~~

The end of the shift was approaching, this Adam was grateful for. They'd had three RTCs and 3 patients with food poisoning in quick succession. Zoe had kept going to check on a patient she'd brought upstairs, so every so often he'd be down a pair of hands in a very busy ED. Kirsty kept disappearing as well. He couldn't keep an eye on her every second though, so she'd probably mostly stayed in cubicles whereas he'd mostly been in resus.

He saw her phone lying on the table in the staff room, when he walked in. She probably wouldn't be too far away then. He knew he was probably overreacting. Warren was gone, and there wasn't anything else that would mean she'd be in danger. It had just been one of those days.

~~Casualty~~

Chloe stood outside by the bike sheds waiting on Scott 'Scooter' Tyesdale. He'd told her to wait here and they'd go for a ride on his moped then back to her's. It was a Friday routine for her to bring someone home, because her parents would be out and her sister would be the only other person left in the house.

She spotted Lucy, Nathan and Nita walking out the gate and tried to appear inconspicuous, until they left. Another thing that Scooter was good for was getting people 'sorted out'. He'd 'sort' them well out.

~~Casualty~~

Kirsty sighed after a long day. Adam walked into the kitchen after her, and she smiled at him, tiredly.

"You look like you've had a long day." He commented lightly

"Yeah. The girls have decided to go to the cinema, I just got back from running them up there. I'll pick them up later."

"Well, I could do it."

"No, no you don't have to, it's fine."

"I still think I should go. You look like all you want is a nice cosy bubble bath and some scented candles. Maybe I could sort that out for you while you watch some TV. Then while you're having your bath, I'll go get them and that means you can get some peace and quiet and just relax."

"You trying to say I'm uptight or something?" she said jokingly

"No, of course not. It would mean you get some 'me time' and I get to know Nita a little better. Anyway, I don't think her friend would mind a different face, would she?"

She shook her head, trying to stifle a yawn, at which they both laughed, before she took her coat off and went to go sit down, while he prepared a bath for her.

~~Casualty~~

Coursework. Brain-frying, head-melting coursework. Six months left until he'd be going off to uni. Until then, he was stuck here, trying to struggle through coursework that he didn't see the point in. He should take a break. Ask Gemma about data-processing later. Right now he needed a drink to take the edge off. He was way too wound up to be able to concentrate on coursework.

That'd mean he'd have to go out to get some. He'd finished the last of his personal stash two nights ago, and Hannah didn't keep any downstairs. She knew he kept it, but only allowed it on the condition that he kept it locked up out of sight and reach of his sisters, especially Charlotte. Also, if he was going to drink it, that he do so in small quantities, so that there would be no need to drive him to hospital for alcohol poisoning.

He realised he didn't have any cash lying around to be able to get any. He wasn't so desperate as to break the law. He'd just go make some extra strong coffee instead. He still had some principles.

His phone buzzed indicating he'd received a text message, it was from Gemma.

'_hey, u doin cw? I cba... wanna come motivate me? ;-P Gem xxxxxx'_

He chuckled, before texting a quick reply. _'there's no-one here you come to me x'_

'_Chloe brought home a random guy again, my mum wants to go out and wants me to keep an eye on them XD xxxxxx'_

'_I thought she was pretty easy going on that kind of thing :-)'_

'_Usually, yes but that's only with me. She's not too keen on Chloe doing certain stuff while she's only 14. :-L'_

'_Your 14 year old slutty, bitchy sister XD'_

'_LOL! Yeah... come over ! x'_

'_K, I'll just leave a note on the fridge and lock up on my way out... Cya in 10 xxx'_

'_3 Cya soon 3 xxxxxx'_

Ben gathered a few things together, including his phone, keys and wallet. After locking the house up, he scrawled a quick note saying where he'd be and stuck it under a green 'r' fridge magnet, then went out the door, locking it behind him.

_Maybe he'd get a real drink after all._

~~Casualty~~

Zoe was just off her shift, and she decided to go and see Shannen before she left. They'd discovered some injuries that they were concerned about and wanted to keep her in over night to monitor her sleeping. When she got up to Shannen's room, the lights were off and the room was empty. She asked a nurse if and where she'd been transferred and discovered that she'd discharged herself.

Shannen had gone back to her husband. What were the chances she'd be back in a week or two again. Probably very high. Zoe had seen it too many times in patients. Even her co-worker, Kirsty, had been subjected to domestic abuse for god knows how long, until her husband's demise.

Zoe was just glad that her acquaintance was no longer in danger. Adam also seemed quite pleased with the outcome. It had taken the department a while to adjust to the idea of them together. It had been nearly a year since Warren's death, and Kirsty seemed to be moving on well. Nita had taken some time to get used to Kirsty-and-Adam, but that had been expected. Adam was great, but he wasn't her dad. There had been no pressure for them to do anything they didn't want to and Zoe was genuinely happy for the pair. It was great to see Adam moving on, especially after Harry's death.

~~Casualty~~

"So. How come you ended up in hospital then?"

"I was picking Michael up."

"I meant why were you there as a patient?"

"I felt a bit dizzy and nearly fainted. They just took some blood to run some routine tests."

"See, why don't I believe you?"

"I don't know, and I really don't care, because it's the truth. I lost so much blood the last time, that of course I felt dizzy. I've been feeling like that for ages."

"So is it really mine?"

"Is what yours?"

"The baby. Is it mine, or did you go have a quick fling or a one night stand with someone?"

"Of course it's yours. I barely leave the house except for work and to bring Sarah places, how would I fit in the time to meet someone and have an affair?"

"You probably do it while I'm at work. Is _Sarah_ mine?"

"Wise up! Of course she is! She's _so_ like you. In fact, sometimes I wonder if she's _mine_."

"She'd be better off" he muttered, then raised his voice to normal talking tone "So, why were you a patient?"

"Look. I was in Michael's cubicle and I nearly fainted, but one of the doctors caught me and took me to get some tests done. It was probably the baby making me a little more sensitive. It happens. Especially if the mother doesn't know and she's in a high stress situation. That's just one of those things in life."

"So, you claim to not be having an affair, yet you're under stress. Why are you?"

"How about, my _job_. I'm a full time mother, a part-time chef and I'm doing a degree in night classes, so excuse me for being a little bit stressed. Besides, perhaps it's you having the affair."

"Don't you use that tone with me. And don't you ever dare accuse me of such a thing. I would never do anything so vulgar. I love my daughter too much to run off with someone else and abandon her with you" he said in a tone that clearly displayed how disgusted he was even at the sight of Shannen.

"But you don't love me"

Silence followed. He had no answer to that.

~~Casualty~~

She woke up, and looked at the clock. 9.12 am. She hadn't been plagued last night with dreams of any kind. Recurring or otherwise. She'd be sure to mention it to Kirsty when everyone was awake. She saw that Nita had in fact already awakened, as her bed was empty and unmade.

The beginning of another day.

~~Casualty~~

###########

Another chapter has come and gone and off to bed with me!


	4. Chapter 4 Open Privacy

Disclaimer: Casualty, Tikkabilla, -Not mine (*sad face*)

AN: Had a total derp with the spelling this chapter... wavy red lines (and the occasional green) everywhere... I nearly broke spellcheck

Featured Characters:

From Casualty cast: Nita and Kirsty Clements, Adam, Nick, Zoe, Big Mac

My own creations: Lucy, Ben, Hannah and Charlotte Miller

Shannen, Michael, Andrew and Sarah McAllister

Nathan Jensen

Chloe and Gemma Turner

Robyn and Dennis Angelo

Enjoy!

~~Casualty~~

Dream Girl

Chapter Four

Open Privacy

~~Casualty~~

"Lucy? Lucy? Lucy!"

"Yeah, sorry. What?"

"I was asking you if you wanted some eggs as well. You were miles away."

"Sorry, yeah. Can I have an egg, please?"

"One fried egg coming right up."

"Another dream?" Asked a concerned Kirsty

"No, actually." She said, surprised "It was weird. But, good weird. I think."

"Maybe the change of scenery did you good. How do you like it? Sunny-side up, or do you want me to flip it?"

"I don't really mind, however it is now."

"Sunny-side up it is."

"So, no dream?"

"Not a flicker"

"Maybe Adam's right. Maybe the change of scenery did do you good."

"I dunno, Nita. Anyway, what do you wanna do today?"

"How about we go shopping then go to the cinema."

"Sounds great. Do you want to come back to mine for a bit after?"

"Only if it's ok with mum."

"You go right ahead, don't let me stop you." Kirsty held her hands up and drained her coffee, placing the mug face down in the sink.

"Well, I suppose we could give you a lift seeing as my car's ready and Adam's giving me a lift to pick it up. Have you checked with your mum if it's ok?"

"Yeah, she's fine with it."

"Ok then. If you get your stuff together after you've eaten we can get going and get lunch out."

"Ok."

"And Lucy. Any more dreams, you can always come and tell me, ok?"

"Yeah, will do."

~~Casualty~~

*Crash*

"What was that?"

"A bloody glass you nosy-"

"Daddy!" shouted an excited Sarah, cutting him off.

"Hey, princess. Good morning!" he lifted her up and kissed her

"Morning daddy." She turned to look at her mother "Mummy, why are you crying?"

"Mummy had a bad dream." Was the first excuse she could come up with.

"Why is there a broken glass on the floor, mummy?"

"It must have fallen off the table, sweetie."

"Yeah, Daddy's very clumsy when he hasn't had his special hot drink." Said Andrew, glaring past his daughter's head at Shannen, who jumped up and busied herself with making some coffee. "Right. While mummy's making daddy his superman drink, how about you and I go see what's on TV, hm?"

"Yeah! I wanna watch Tikkabilla!"

"Well, we can do just that if it's on, or I'll get the computer on and we can use it instead. How about that?"

"Ok!"

Andrew shot another glare over Sarah's head, before leaving the kitchen. Leaving Shannen to clear up the glass and finish the coffee.

~~Casualty~~

"I'm gonna ask Nathan if he wants to come with us, is that ok?"

"Sure thing. Do you like him?"

"Yeah, he's alright, we're mates."

"I think you know what I mean. Do you like him _in that way_?"

"Yeah, I mean, n-no I-I mean. It'd be weird."

"I think he likes you."

"And you like my brother."

"Eugh, no! Not after Gemma Turner's been all over him."

"But you so do."

"Eww. I wouldn't go anywhere near him. Anyway, isn't there an unwritten rule or something that you can't go out with your best friend's brother 'cos it's practically incest?"

"I dunno. Anyway, we should get ready to go. I've just finished packing. Have you got everything you were gonna bring?"

"Yeah, I think so."

"Great, let's go."

Only, Lucy had forgotten to lift one thing. One thing she treasured most deeply. Her biggest secret.

Her dream diary.

~~Casualty~~

"Alright, Big Mac, can you take this one up to OBGYN, please?"

"Sure thing, doc." He mock saluted and took the wheelchair patient towards the waiting lift.

"Mads, can you check on Mr Silverton in cubicle three, his test results will be back any time soon."

"Sure thing, Dr Hanna. Right away."

"How are we this morning, Dr Hanna? Bright and breezy as usual, I see."

"Well, it's the normal Saturday morning slump before the lunch time mini-boom. A lot of people still probably in bed, just glad I am not on tonight."

"And why is that, exactly?"

"Saturday nights. This ED is packed with drunks and idiots."

"This ED's always packed with drunks and idiots."

"Well, more than any other time of the week." She sighed in exasperation. "I have to go see some patients, Nick. We can catch up more later."

Nick Jordan smiled after Zoe's retreating back, and turned back to his notes.

~~Casualty~~

_PrettyGurrl14: -Hey sasquatch  
-Lucy_

_LittleLucky: -Oh so I have a name now do I?_

_PrettyGurrl14: -Shut up. I'm only talking to you because my sister told me to._

_LittleLucky: -Y? Is it cos she's infatuated with my brother?_

_PrettyGurrl14: -Probably. Anyway she wants me to be civil to you cos our stupid mother is back in  
town. Gem thinks that she expects us to be perfect or something retarded like that.  
My mother said you were a good kid or something so she wants me to associate  
myself with you._

_LittleLucky: -Ok. It's probably cos of Ben and Gemma tho._

_PrettyGurrl14: -who knows?_

_PrettyGurrl14: -I gotta go, bye_

_PrettyGurrl14 appears to be offline and may not reply. (Send an offline message which they will receive the next time they sign in.)_

"Obviously couldn't bear speaking to someone like me for a minute longer." She said to no-one in particular, before signing herself off.

~~Casualty~~

Kirsty and Adam were playing cards at the kitchen table, that evening.

"Looks like I win again, loser." Kirsty smirked mischievously

"I let you have a few. I also believe strongly in beginner's luck."

"Yeah right." She laughed "And I can tapdance on a highwire."

At that moment, Nita walked in slowly, chewing her lip.

"Mum."

"What's up, darling?"

"I think Lucy left this behind." She held up a small hardback book "I think it's her diary."

"Ok, well you can give it to her in school on Monday."

"Mm." She replied, non-committally

"What's up now?"

"I accidentally may have read a few pages." She said, placing it gingerly on the table

"Nita." Kirsty said, slightly disappointedly "That's her private thoughts. It's quite rude to read someone's thoughts, I thought you'd respect your friend's privacy a bit more."

Nita glanced down at the diary on the table and lifted it. She flicked to a page and put it down again. "Read that."

"Nita, I'm not going to read a teenager's diary."

"Mum. This isn't any diary. I think it may be a record of all her dreams. It's a dream diary. Well, more like a nightmare diary. The more recent instalments suggest the dreams are getting worse, or she's not able to handle them as well. Read this page."

"I'm not condoning this, but ok. Just this once."

'_They almost had me last night. I could feel the burning stench in the air that surrounds them. My skin felt cold and I could feel the hairs on my neck stand on end. I don't remember them there when it really happened, so why do I dream about them all the time? They're hunting me. I'm not safe. What if they catch me tomorrow night? Will I be able to wake up? So many questions and no way to answer them._

_Why won't they leave me alone?'_

~~Casualty~~

She awoke with a start. The dreams were back. They were different this time though.

Instead of the shooting, she was in a hospital bed. Her dad was there. He reached to feel her forehead, and moved his hand down her face to her neck. He pressed lightly and she felt a warm liquid on her chin, where the top of his hand was touching it. He withdrew his hand and it was covered in a bright red substance. His hand started to melt, turning into blood, spilling onto her bed.

She screamed. But there was no sound.

She jumped out of the bed and fell on the ground, because her vision had blurred. She started to throw up. Her vision returned and she saw she had been puking up blood, her hands soaked in it. She looked up and saw that her father was no longer there. In his place they stood. The three hunters. She was looking them straight in the eyes. It was over.

~~Casualty~~

##########

The dream sequence just sort of... happened

I just started writing and let the words flow...

If interested please review...


	5. Chapter 5 Beyond Repair

Disclaimer: Casualty belongs to BBC and not me (I sads)

AN: I had Mayday Parade on loop while writing this and as such have included lyrics from selected songs... I also have some more artists

The tracks the lyrics are from (in order of appearance) are:

Mayday Parade – Jersey

Mayday Parade – If You Wanted A Song Written About You All You Had To Do Was Ask

Black Veil Brides – Knives And Pens

Asking Alexandria – Wings For the Sake Of Falling

Featured Characters:

From Casualty cast: (None this chappy but you'll see more in Ch6!)

My own creations: Hannah, Charlotte, Lucy and Ben Miller

Gemma, Chloe and (introducing) Tommy and Gina Turner

Enjoy!

~~Casualty~~

Dream Girl

Chapter Five

Beyond Repair

~~Casualty~~

*thud*

Hannah woke with a start. Hearing light footsteps outside her room, she called out with her voice cracking from sleep.

"Ben? Charlotte? Lucy?"

"Mummy?" a small voice said

"Hey darling, what's going on? Did something fall and make a loud bang?"

The little girl nodded and was about to speak when blood curdling screams erupted from the girls' room. Hannah sprung out of bed, her legs tangled in her duvet and tripping her, causing her to stumble. She managed to untangle herself following her younger daughter to her room. She saw Ben come out of his room, his hair standing on end.

"Mum, what's going on? I heard screaming."

"I don't know, take Charlotte. I think something's wrong with Lucy." She turned to Charlotte and said "Charlotte, honey, go with Ben downstairs, I think Lucy's just having a bad dream or something."

"Ok mummy."

She glanced behind her at the two going downstairs, before entering the girls' bedroom. The sight before her shocked and scared her. Lucy was writhing on the floor, mumbling and whimpering in her sleep. Hannah knew you weren't supposed to wake someone who was sleepwalking, she didn't know about this but she had to act now. As she reached to wake her daughter, she sprung back as Lucy screamed, her words becoming clear.

"NO! Let go of me. No... Let me go. LEMMEGO!"

"LUCY! Come on, wake up. Wake up!" Lucy started to hyperventilate and continued to squirm "LUCY! It's mum. You're having a nightmare. You have to WAKE UP!"

Lucy screamed and shot bolt upright, banging head with her mum.

"Ow! Sorry, mum." She rubbed her head and cleared her throat "What time is it? What are you doing in my room?" she started to panic as she realised where she was "Why am I on the floor?"

"You had a nightmare and you fell out of bed."

"Where's Charlotte?"

"Downstairs with Ben."

"Why?"

"You woke her up when you fell out of bed, and she came and got me."

"Sorry"

"For having a bad dream? It's not your fault. You were also screaming. I think that's when you woke up Ben."

"I'm so sorry for waking everyone up." Tears began to form in her already bloodshot eyes.

"Hey, hey. Don't cry sweetie, it's ok to have a bad dream."

"They keep happening" she whispered

"What do you mean?"

"I keep dreaming. About dad."

"Oh. Do you want to go see Doctor Munroe?"

"No. All he did the last time was tell me that I must not be eating right and put me on a dairy-free diet. It has nothing to do with what I'm eating."

"Well, how about we go see someone else?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"I don't want to get labelled as a freak."

"No-one thinks you're a freak. It would just help to have some way to talk about it."

"I'm not crazy. I don't need a shrink."

"I never said you did"

"You didn't have to. I could tell that's what you meant."

"I only want what's best for you. For all three of you."

"Even if it means sending me away?"

"If that's what it takes. You were only nine when your dad was shot. It's perfectly natural for you to miss him."

"I'm afraid to sleep. _They_ keep following me."

"Who keeps following you?"

"The three hunters. They're going to catch me and kill me. They took my diary they know I've been keeping a record of their movements."

"You've been keeping a diary? For how long?"

"A few months. I don't know why I'm dreaming about it now when I didn't then. I remember Ben burnt down that shed. That's all I _do_ remember."

"Did anything happen around the time the dreams started?"

"I don't know."

"Did they start the night that Ben got taken to hospital?"

The look said everything that Lucy couldn't. Finally a trigger was found.

~~Casualty~~

The music floated through the door to Gemma's room.

'_cause Jersey just got colder and I'll have you know I'm scared to death that everything that you had ever said to me was just a lie until you left'_

Chloe held the phone against her shoulder, and went into her sister's room. "Gem?"

"What?"

'_I'm just gone beyond repair'_

"Ben's on the phone"

"I don't wanna talk to him. Tell him I'm asleep or something."

"Hey, sorry Gemma's feeling a little under the weather, she's totally zonked out. Would you like me to take a message?" she paused, listening to the response "Ok. No problem."

The music changed _'I'm throwing away pictures that I never should have taken in the first place'_

"Nice tunes."

'_And I hope this makes you happy now that the flame we had is burning out' _

"Is that intentional?"

"Is _what _intentional?"

"The music. It's like totally depressing."

"It's just music."

"Music can say things that words can't even begin to consider."

"Deep." She said sarcastically, flicking through the music list and selecting a new song

"This better?"

_'Alone at last, we can sit and fight... I've lost all faith in this blurring light... Stay right here we can change our plight! We're storming through this, despite what's right!'_

"You're taking the piss"

"Totally."

"Did something happen between you and Ben?"

"Go away"

"So it did then. I told you he was a nutjob."

"He's not. Get out of my room."

"You need to call him. He wouldn't tell me why, but he said it's important."

"GO AWAY!"

"Are you being like this 'cos of Gina?"

Without a word, Gemma got up and shoved Chloe out of the room, slamming the door behind her. Screaming 'music' erupted from her stereo

'_Kiss goodbye, to the poetic letters, the symptoms of being able to breathe without a care...__Cushion the screaming, it's merely conversation in regards to speaking for the sake of concern__... __Take the flight of a butterfly, drop dead... Hear the whisper of the bullet's pace__'_

~~Casualty~~

It had started with the late nights. The excuses of 'work' or 'having to check on the team'. Then the e-mail. She hadn't meant to read it. He'd left the computer signed in. It had popped up from 'ANGELO' she thought it was work.

It wasn't.

'_Hey,_

_I miss you_

_You should come over_

_Leave her to look after the kid and come see me_

_I have a surprise for you when you get here ;-)_

_Robyn x'_

She marked the e-mail as 'unread' and turned off the monitor. She'd just leave it. Angelo had probably just experienced one of Andrew's 'nice' moments and had become clingy and wanted to use him to get a higher position.

Not that she believed _that_ for a second.

~~Casualty~~

"HONEY! I'M HOME!"

"Oh no."

"Please tell me you didn't leave the door unlocked."

"I didn't. I don't know how she got in."

The girls could hear their mother's slurred voice drifting from the hallway.

"You know. I've always loved my visits back 'ere. So many memmies."

"Memories?"

"Yuh that one."

"Let's get you inside and a good strong coffee in you."

"NO" she screeched "I'm totawee shober."

"I'm sure."

Chloe appeared behind her father, her lips pressed into a thin line. "Dad. A word. Now."

"Gemmy! My baby! Oh how much you growed up."

"I'm Chloe. Gemma refuses to come within ten miles of you. Dad, that word. In the hallway, please."

"Oh, she's _just_ like you Tommy. All authoritative and instruction-y. I love it when you dominate me. In fact that's how you got made Chloe shweeetumms."

"Stop talking to me. Dad. Hallway! NOW!"

"Gina, sit down here, I'll be back in a moment."

Chloe turned to her dad after closing the door and hissed "How could you?"

"I had to. She's your mother. Don't you want her here?"

"NO! Not _ever._ She already screwed this family up enough. Send her back to wherever you found her. We can't afford to have her around. Or had you forgotten what happened the last time she showed up?"

"Ok. I'll admit that Gina is a little eccentric-"

"Eccentric? She's a bloody _drunk_. I'm surprised she's managed to keep herself alive all of this time."

Her father looked away.

"What? Oh no. Oh nononono. Oh _please_ no. PLEASE tell me you haven't been giving her _money_. _Please_ dad. Of anything you could be doing."

"I've been helping her out a little."

"When she gets money. OUR money. She just goes and buys booze. Why are you allowing that?"

"I have no choice. She's my wife. I promised to look after her in sickness and in health. For richer or for poorer."

"If she's not out within the next hour, we're both leaving. Me _and _Gemma. We're going to get out of your lives. We'll leave you to your sorry existences together."

"Please don't. I'm sure we can come up with something."

"You have an hour. ONE HOUR. And then you'll never see either daughter ever again. One hour and neither of you can destroy us again. I'm not doing this for me. I'm doing it for Gem. She's already been torn apart by Gina, I don't want our hard work at picking up the pieces to turn to crap."

"But-"

"Fifty-nine minutes and counting. Get her out."

~~Casualty~~

###########

Ultimatums are not that great

But sometimes I just gotta chuck one in


	6. Chapter 6 A Mother's Love

Disclaimer: None of this is mine. Apart from the characters listed under 'My own creations'

AN: Probably going to end this soon. too many things going on right now, and stories can be too long.

Featured Characters:

From Casualty cast: Dixie and Jeff Collier

Nita and Kirsty Clements

My own creations: Nathan, Magdalena and Isak Jensen

Tommy, Gina, Gemma and Chloe Turner

Callum Deane

Robyn Angelo

Enjoy!

~~Casualty~~

Dream Girl

Chapter Six

A Mother's Love

~~Casualty~~

Broken glass littered the tarmac . Flecks of blood stained many of the shattered fragments. There was black rubber tires treads burned into the ground. More blood pooled over the skid marks on the tarmac, the source was unclear. It seemed to be coming from what was beyond the broken glass. Looking further up the street, a mangled car wreck was embedded between a wall and a lamppost. There was steam billowing from the front of the wreck, closest to the wall.

The front passenger door was only slightly dented and had been flung open. A figure fell out and half-crawled away from the pile of crumpled metal. The figure struggled to an almost standing position, leaning against the back passenger door. The figure jerked the handle a few times, before successfully opening the door.

The figure reached into the back seat and eventually pulled out a smaller figure. A third figure exited through the same door. The two back seat passengers were helped to the pavement, while the front seat passenger returned to attempt to get the driver out. The older of the two passengers on the pavement comforted the other, who was crying, and pulled out a (surprisingly intact) phone.

They needed help. The older passenger started to dial.

9-9-(cancel) He didn't know where they were. Were they still in Britain? In Europe? He dialled the European emergency service number.

1-1-2

The call could be automatically traced, and redirected to the local emergency services.

_"Hello, 999 emergency response, what is the nature of your emergency?"_

"Help! There's been an accident. I don't know where I am exactly, but I think I'm somewhere in Holby. I dialed 112 to be safe."

"Ok. Yes, I have your location and the nearest emergency point has been notified. They will get to your location in minutes.

~~Casualty~~

Robyn had just finished sorting her filing cabinet when she looked up and saw a young woman walking through the door. The woman was blonde and looked gaunt and pale. Currently, she was looking round the CID cautiously, her lank blonde hair sliding over her face. There were a handful of people in the office, she didn't think anyone had seen the young blonde. Taking a breath to calm herself into the image of professionalism, she cautiously approached the woman, who she could see was ever so slightly shaking.

"Excuse me," Robyn said as she got close to the stranger "Can I help you? My name's DI Robyn Angelo. Are you looking for someone?"

The young woman's eyes darted to Robyn. They were huge and round pale blue saucers. Her breathing was quick and shallow. Slowly she opened her mouth to speak, and shut it, swallowing before chewing on her bottom lip and looking at the floor.

"If you like we could go somewhere a bit quieter." A small nod. "Ok, let's go in here."

The two women were sitting down on the sofa in the previously empty break room. Robyn studied the other woman. She seemed on edge, so she'd have to pick her words carefully.

"So," she began, in attempt to break the silence "how about we start with your name? You know mine, but I don't know yours."

"Shannen" barely a whisper, but Robyn still heard it.

"McAllister? Do you want me to get Andrew for you?"

"No." She said, a little too quickly. She looked away from Robyn again and said "I mean, I don't want to disturb him at work."

"There must have been a reason for you to come in."

"I- I can't." She stood up and started towards the door "I have to go. Sorry. I've wasted your time."

"No, no. We've actually got a bit of a slow day. Mostly a bit of a spring clean and tying up some loose ends, the odd piece of paperwork, but no real hard work that'll keep us here past our shifts. What's going on, Shannen?"

"I... can't tell you."

"Me specifically or-?"

"In general. I've nothing against you, I don't know you, but..."

There was a long silence and Robyn gestured for her to continue "But...?"

"You wouldn't believe me."

"I will. Especially since you're married to my boss."

"Not if I accuse him of something."

~~Casualty~~

Jeff and Dixie were joking around, stocking up equipment on to the ambulance. Kirsty was coming into the car park past them. Jeff noticed her and called to her "Alright Kirsty?"

"Hiya Jeff. Stocking up?"

"Yeah. How's things?"

"Not too bad. Nita's settled back into a routine and "

"Well that's great to hear." He smiled at her

"4-0-0-4 received. Jeff we have a shout."

"Right, see you later, I better go. I'm just going on shift now, don't wanna be late."

"Yeah, See you later, love." said Dixie smiling "Come on you, let's go."

~~Casualty~~

Tommy had managed to convince Gina to go back to her brother Callum's until he could sort out the two girls. She didn't want him to leave and he kept trying to convince her to stay away from them for the time being.

"Gina, the girls do still love you. Deep down. I just don't want them to leave. I need you to stay with Callum for another few weeks until we get sorted."

"But they don't even wanna see their own mum. How are you gonna fix it?

"I can't fix this alone."

"So I'll move in."

"You can't. Not until you get yourself cleaned up and sober."

"I can do that. I really can."

"Properly this time. If you go out on another binge, I'm changing the locks and throwing you on the street, you can find your own way back to Callum." He glanced at the door then turned his eyes to his hands on the table.

"I promise I'll change"

He looked up, clearly pushing back tears "Don't make promises you can't keep, Gina."

~~Casualty~~

"Alright mate, what's going on here then? My name's Jeff. I'm a paramedic. That's my friend Dixie. She's a paramedic as well. We're here to help you and see if you need to come with us."

"I'm Nathan. This is Nita." The boy gestured to the girl, who's face was buried in his shoulder.

"Nita, can you look at me sweetheart? I just wanna check your face for injuries."

She turned slowly, and Jeff immediately recognised her, despite the gash on her forehead and split lip which were both spewing blood all over her face. Her eyes were heavy lidded and unfocused.

"Right, Nita. You're bleeding quite badly. We'll fix you up and get you to your mum. She was just going on shift when we were leaving."

"But I don't-" she started to say, sleepily

"Shh. Don't try and talk" he noticed there was blood matted in her hair. The way she was speaking could suggest a head injury and probable concussion. There wasn't much point in him trying to test for one right here because her eyes were opening and closing sluggishly, before they shut completely and her head lolled forwards.

"Whoa. Nita! What's happened? Why won't she wake up?"

"It's ok. It looks like she's just fainted. Ok. Who else was in the car?"

"My parents. We were taking her home from our friend's birthday party. My mum. She was driving and my dad got me and Nita out but he didn't come back."

"All right. The other paramedic, Dixie's just gone to check them over, ok. I'm just going to get Nita into the ambulance and I'll go help her, alright?" He got up and jogged the short distance to the ambulance.

~~Casualty~~

"I have to go. I need to pick up Sarah."

"Shannen, please wait."

"I have to get Sarah. I need to-"

"Need to what?" she dropped her voice and whispered "to go back to your abusive husband?"

~~Casualty~~

"Hello, Sweetheart, My name's Dixie, I'm a paramedic. Can you say your name for me please?"

"Maggie." The woman said with a slight northern European lilt.

"Alright Maggie, what's this man's name?"

"Izzy. My poor Izzy."

"Ok. Right, As I said I'm a paramedic, is it ok if I look you over?"

"No. I am not hurt, please check my Izzy."

"I am just going to give you the once over because you're not as badly hurt, so I can move on to Izzy. Is Izzy your husband?"

Maggie relented and allowed Dixie to look her over "Yes. We were taking our son, Nathan and his young lady friend home."

"Ok, Maggie everything's ok here so if you'd like to sit over there on the pavement for a few moments, I'll help Izzy."

"Hey! Dix!" Jeff jogged to the car and explained his situation "I've got one concious with just a couple of bumps and bruises and one looks like a head injury. How you doin' over'ere?"

"Izzy here's taken most of the damage, Maggie over there seems a bit shaken, couple of scratches but nothing too serious I can see. I've radioed for the fire brigade and another unit to help with getting him out, ETA six minutes. Could you bring Maggie to the other two, there's some things that might be unpleasant especially as she's been through so much already."

"Alright.

~~Casualty~~

1:49

They'd closed off the door to her. Put all of their feelings in a box and locked them away, just out of sight. So why was her intrusion leaving behind sleepless nights and tears? _Again._

2:04

Still no sleep. Chloe was probably fast asleep. It was hard to tell because she didn't snore, like their dad.

2:13

She turned over again. She could hear Gemma in the next room sighing. Whether or not she was asleep was another matter. The paper thin walls meant that Chloe didn't want to disturb her sister either way if she made any noise.

2.27

Her eyes were desperate to close but her brain had other ideas.

~~Casualty~~

"Sir, can I've a word?"

"DI Angelo, unless this is a life or death situation, I don't have time for it. Make it quick."

She looked around at the other officers in the room. "Actually sir, I was wondering if we could talk, in private."

"Seriously?" he got up and led her into his office "I am about to go into a meeting, I don't have time."

"You don't have time in general," she lowered her voice "or you don't have time for me?"

He sighed, exasperatedly "What is it?"

"Your wife."

"So? What about her?"

"She was here earlier. Now, she wouldn't openly admit it, but I saw signs of abuse. Possibly you'd care to explain."

"Shannen is... difficult. She had a rocky childhood. She has some trust issues. Sometimes when she's been drinking, she gets a tad... not really violent but... paranoid."

"Does she know about us?"

"No. Despite her paranoia, her powers of perception are basically non-existent."

"She did seem wary of me."

"Told you. Trust issues."

"Not in an 'I don't trust you' kind of way, more of a 'you've done something that makes you want to avoid me but I don't quite know what it is'kind of wary."

"That's stupid. Wary is wary, and Shannen is a drama queen who acts like a hedgehog caught in a pair of headlights."

"Is it not deer?"

"What?"

"_Deer_ caught in a pair of headlights, you said hedgehog."

"That's not important. Anyway. I'm going to be late for my meeting. We'll continue this later."

As he walked away, Robyn couldn't help feel that his tone had ended up almost threatening and quite intimidating.

~~Casualty~~

###########

So I can't post again until after my exams on the 13th of June

I'll see you all soon

daydreamerkid xx


	7. Chapter 7 Justification

Disclaimer: So this isn't mine, just the characters listed under 'my own creations'

AN: writing this while watching TV so if it's kinda random please excuse me

Featured Characters:

From Casualty cast:

Adam Trueman

Nita and Kirsty Clements

Jay Faldren

Zoe Hanna

My own creations:

Nathan and Magdalena Jensen

Gemma and Chloe Turner

Anonymous 5 year old boy

Superintendent Richard Pallbank

DCI Andrew McAllister

DI Robyn Andrews

Enjoy!

##########

Dream Girl

Chapter Seven

Justification

##########

~~Casualty~~

_The previous night…_

_The world had slowed down when Nathan limped into the ED, behind a bed being rolled into the department. She hadn't seen the face, but expected Nita to come after Nathan, a small worried look on her face and possibly chewing her lip. They were meant to be on their way back from a birthday party._

"Kirsty, you're needed in cubicle two, can you do his obs, I'm going to chase up his bloods." Zoe snapped Kirsty out of her reverie; all thoughts of Nathan were put out of her mind, as she attended to the five year old boy in cubicle two. They were waiting for a bed to become available in paeds.

"Where's my mummy?" said the boy, tiredly.

"She's just gone to the toilet, she'll be back in a minute, alright?" the boy nodded and looked away, closing his eyes sleepily as Kirsty continued to work around him.

_Blood. So much blood. The patient was bleeding from a head-wound that wouldn't let up._

_They had managed to get their unconscious patient stabilised and cleaned up._

_Recognition. Nita._

"Adam, we've got incoming in Resus 1. This patient is stable, you're needed."

"I can't-"

"_Now_ Adam."

_Dad. What happened? What made you crash? Mum. Was it 'cos you had been fighting again, despite the fact we had a visitor._

_Nita. Where was she? He had followed her in, but she was whisked off, while his mother had fretted over the cuts on his face and the limp._

_He had refused treatment until he knew his dad and his gir- and Nita were ok._

"What have we got?" A dark haired man in green scrubs strode through the doors and instantly took command of the entire room.

"Forty-one year old male RTC victim. He was the driver and took most of the damage. Possible internal bleeding and a substantial head-wound."

"Excuse me, mate. Your dad's in the best hands now, how 'bout we get you looked over and let them get on with it, alright?"

"Yeah, sure." He said, not taking his eyes off his dad, until his line of sight was broken by a nurse over by the bed. He looked and saw a youngish male nurse talking to him. He gestured towards the door and said "After you, mate."

~~Casualty~~

The alarm didn't waken Chloe that morning, as she was already awake. As she leaned over to turn it off, she saw a shadow pass under her door.

The hallway was empty. The shower was running. Snores were floating from the master bedroom. Gemma.

Her phone lit up on her bedside table. Message from Sam:

_Hey, you busy today? I could use a hand with some stuff._

A quick reply: _Nothing planned so far. What kind of stuff?_

"Did you sleep much?" Gemma was towelling her hair as she stood in the doorway of Chloe's room.

"Not really. I probably dozed off for a bit a few times, but nothing to write home about."

"I drifted in and out as well. Couldn't stop thinking about Gina and dad."

"Me either. I told dad it was either her or us. Gem, he's been giving her money."

"As long as we don't let her destroy us then we'll be alright."

"What about dad?"

"What about him?"

~~Casualty~~

"Full name, please."

"Magdalena Sophia Katerine Jensen."

"Ok Magdalena-"

"Please, Doctor Hanna, call me Maggie"

"Maggie, can I have your date of birth, please."

"Twelfth of January, nineteen sixty-four."

"And any previous medical history we should know about?"

"No. I have been healthy and well most of my life. Apart from when I was a child, I had mild Pneumonia for a few weeks."

"How old would you have been then?"

"Seven. It was close to my eighth birthday though."

"Ok. Anything else?"

"The odd cough or cold but nothing severe."

"What about while you were pregnant? Any problems?"

"No. I have five strong, healthy children all natural births."

"Wow, that's pretty impressive."

"Do you have children, doctor?"

"No, unfortunately I haven't been blessed with the privilege."

"It really is a privilege. However, there is no time for me to be sick or take a day off. Larger families are much busier families. Especially when the children are young. Of course, I am done with all of that now, my youngest is eight. A little girl, Maisie. I have Nathan, who is fifteen, Franck is seventeen, Sami is twenty and Helena is twenty-nine."

"That must have been quite a handful."

"After I had Helena at eighteen, I juggled raising her, a part-time job and my studies to be able to get a good enough job to provide for my new family. Now my baby is starting her own family. She got married two years ago and will make me a first-time grandmother in two months time."

"Oh. Congratulations. I hope you enjoy grandparenthood as much as parenthood. Maybe even more."

"I certainly hope so. My girl Sami is the next oldest, but I don't see her settling down."

"What makes you say that?" Zoe asked, continuing to write up the notes on Maggie.

"She is not the type. She has always been a kind of a free spirit. Not one for getting a husband and having a family. She moved out as soon as she could. Rented an apartment with some friends. She does love her family, but she loves her independence. She is in medical school now. She had a very good job before and has been able to not have to take out a loan, while she studies, and she has enough for the rent."

"Well, Maggie, all is well here." Zoe smiled and put her chart down "I'm just going to get the forms to discharge you, then you can get back to your family."

"What about my boy, Nathan? He was brought in here as well."

"I'll go see what I can find out."

~~Casualty~~

"Girls, what are you doing?"

"We're going away for a bit. Not sure when we'll be back." Chloe said in a clipped tone, lifting her bag onto her bed, and beginning to put clothes from her drawers into it.

"Yeah. We're going to go somewhere where Gina can't hurt us." Gemma walked into the room and gave her sister her straightners, and took her book. "I also need to return this today. Don't want any late fees. We're strapped for cash enough as it is." She glared at their dad, before returning to her room.

"You don't have to leave. Gina's gone back to Callum's."

"Yeah, but for how long?" Chloe said, sceptically

"Until she's clean. I won't bring her back here again."

"You shouldn't have taken her back to Callum's. If you wanted her clean, you'd have booked her into a clinic. Taken her to an AA meeting or two. _Something_ productive, instead of lumping her off on her brother, who is actually a decent bloke and doesn't deserve to be stuck with that excuse for a human being."

"She's your mother." He replied weakly

"My mother died a long time ago. I don't know who that woman is who's stolen and destroyed her body."

"Your mother was never a saint."

"I never asked her to be. All I've wanted is to have a _normal_ mum. Not someone who tries to sell me 'cos they're desperate for their next fix."

"I didn't know you knew."

"I was seven. Not naive. I _do_ remember. It was back when she used that orange scented perfume to hide the smell of alcohol and drugs."

"She got off the drugs. So she can get off the alcohol."

"The drugs never took hold of her. They weren't in easy supply. She couldn't just drop into a corner-shop and casually ask for a pound of coke."

"Don't get angry with me."

"Angry? This isn't me angry. This is me just getting started."

"Chloe. Back off." Gemma put her head around the door and then turned to her dad "We're going and that's that."

~~Casualty~~

"Guv."

"Yes, Robyn?"

"I have to file a complaint."

"Really? Against who?"

"Detective Chief Inspector Andrew McAllister."

"What did he do?"

"I have found out that he routinely beats up his wife."

"Did she tell you that?"

"Not in so many words, but she didn't have to. I saw the bruises."

"I need a bit more than a few bruises, Robyn, before I charge one of my best officers with domestic assault."

"I can get statements from family members. I can try and get a statement from the victim."

"Domestic abuse cases are always difficult. Especially when they hit close to home."

"What is that supposed to mean, sir?"

"I'm saying that as a close colleague of DCI McAllister's, it may be a point for his defence that there is a conflict of interest."

"I can file anonymously."

"He'll know it was you."

"Why? How?"

"You are the closest to him, and by the sound of things, the only person who is willing to speak up about it. He'd work it out eventually."

"What about his nephew? He was in the hospital and Shannen was saying that he'd told the doctor treating him."

"Unless a notification from the hospital comes through, my hands are tied."

"So I just sit back and let him get away with it?"

"No. Of course not. Use your skills as a detective to build some evidence. Speak to some witnesses, see if the nephew wants to take things further."

"Yes, sir. Obviously this doesn't go beyond this room."

"Obviously, Detective Inspector Andrews."

~~Casualty~~

###########

Annnnnnnnnnnnnnd I can't be bothered after that.

I'm kind of bouncing between stories right now so updates are gonna be scattered


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